The Caucus System
What is Caucus?
Voters of the same political party gather and vote for precinct leadership and delegate positions. These delegates go on to vote at county and state convention.
Caucus meetings are generally held at the precinct level and they are run by political parties. Rules around caucus can vary by county and depend on who is running your caucus.
Delegates and Convention
After caucus, those selected as delegates go to their party's nominating convention to vote for the candidates their party should support. Each precinct has at least one delegate to represent them at party conventions.
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In Utah, party conventions are a big deal—convention is the main way to determine who is on the primary and general election ballots. (Gathering signatures from voters—called the "signature path"—is the other way candidates can get on the ballot).
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Delegates spend time researching, meeting with, and vetting candidates before convention. Voters are encouraged to reach out to delegates regarding candidates, but delegates are not obligated to vote according to their precinct's preferences.
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If a candidate wins over 60% of the delegate vote at convention, all other convention candidates are eliminated. If two candidates receive between 40–60%, both candidates move to the primary.
Unless other candidates gathered signatures—or there is a serious challenger from another party—the outcome of some races is essentially determined at convention, before they ever reach a primary or general election.